"Kyle's a brown belt. She's" "It's a demonstration," Ethan said smoothly. "Not a competition match. Kyle knows how to calibrate.
The point is to give the crowd something engaging to watch." There was a pause. Marcus was not stupid. He could feel the shape of something in this conversation that he couldn't quite define.
"I want to clear it with Master Whitaker," he said. "Of course," Ethan said agreeably. "Totally appropriate. Just thought it would be a good opportunity for her."
He left Marcus standing in the equipment room with a stack of chest protectors in his hands and a distinct feeling that he had just agreed to something he hadn't quite meant to agree to. Master Whitaker heard the proposal the following morning. His initial reaction was hesitation. He stood behind his desk in the small office off the main hall and listened to Marcus explain the proposed demonstration match, and the hesitation showed clearly on his face.
A slight narrowing of the eyes, a pause before responding. "She's 9 years old," he said. "Kyle is experienced and disciplined," Marcus said. "It will be controlled."
"Kyle is 17 and outweighs her by 60 pounds." "It's a demonstration, not a competition match. Kyle has the technique, too." "I'm aware of Kyle's technique," Whitaker said.
He was quiet for a moment. He turned and looked at the wall behind his desk, where a framed photograph showed his own instructor, a small, slight Japanese man who had routinely performed demonstration matches against much larger opponents, not to win, but to teach. He thought about the girl in the blue GI. He had barely watched her since that first day.
He had sent her to the beginners mat and mostly forgotten about her. He had heard the whispers this week, the same as everyone else and had filed them under the category of rumor until he had reason to do otherwise. "Fine," He said at last. "But Kyle keeps it clean.
If I see anything excessive, I stop the match immediately." Marcus nodded and left. Whitaker sat back down at his desk, opened his training log and returned to what he had been doing before the conversation. He did not think about it again until Saturday morning.
Earl Harris overheard the proposal on Thursday. He had been cleaning the corridor outside the equipment room when Ethan and Marcus spoke and the walls of Iron Gate were not thick. He had stood very still, cloth in hand and listened to every word. Afterward, he put down his cloth and walked to the side mat where the afternoon beginner class had just ended.